A great effort in aid of Save for Samuel

Anna Wright with her son Samuel at the finish of the Great North Run in South Shields on Sunday.

Published:11:45Friday 15 September 2017

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Anna Wright took part in a world-famous half-marathon on Sunday as part of fund-raising efforts for her son to go to the USA for some revolutionary treatment to help him walk.

She completed the Great North Run with close friend Beth Gibson. Elaine Sambrook and Aarron Robson, who work with Anna’s husband Jonathan, also ran the 13.1 miles from Newcastle to South Shields in aid of the Save For Samuel campaign.

The couple aim to raise £25,000 for their son Samuel, who is now two, to benefit from therapies and techniques that are not available in the UK.

The Wright family, which also includes one-year-old Estella, live in Morpeth town centre.

Anna said: “It was the first time I had done the Great North Run since having the children, so I was a bit nervous beforehand.

“However, seeing all the runners at the start was inspiring and once we got under way, the crowds were amazing.

“It was a brilliant experience overall, even though I started to feel the blisters on my feet in the last few miles.”

She thanked White Stuff in Morpeth for allowing her to put up a poster about her doing the Great North Run and having a collection tub in the shop and Morpeth Lions Club for its £200 donation.

Samuel Wright suffered a brain injury during birth and as a result was diagnosed with cerebral palsy.

He pulled through, but as a result of the injury, the muscles in his body were affected – leaving him unable to walk, talk or eat.

Despite making huge progress in recent months, including learning to sit independently and to crawl and stand, he relies on being tube fed and cannot talk.

His parents are aiming to raise £25,000 so he can spend three weeks at the Neurological and Physical Abilitation Center (NAPA) in Los Angeles. It provides therapies and techniques that are not available in the UK.

Events and activities are being planned to help the fund-raising and a new page online has been set-up through the Just4Children charity, which enables people to add Gift Aid to their donation.